


Shallow

by melodiousoblivion



Series: Home With You [2]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-08-03 16:23:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16329467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melodiousoblivion/pseuds/melodiousoblivion
Summary: Bellarke AU in the Home With You verse, set to Shallow from 'A Star Is Born'





	Shallow

**Author's Note:**

> i saw a star is born and i'm obsessed. expect a fic to is that alright very soon because it makes my heart MELT

 

**Tell me somethin' girl**

**Are you happy in this modern world?**

**Or do you need more?**

**Is there somethin' else you're searchin' for?**

 

On the nights Clarke went back to her house, she couldn’t sleep. Bellamy would see her the next day, bruises under her eyes, face drawn and haggard. Her dad had gotten a job in Japan, but she stayed behind, deciding to finish her high school career in the states.

 

Abby wanted Clarke to be a doctor, and though she could be a fantastic doctor, Bellamy knew that wasn’t what she wanted. He saw the way her face softened when she started painting, watched the stress seep out of her shoulders with every stroke of the paintbrush.

 

So he drove her out to vistas. Set himself up with a blanket and book while she painted the landscape for hours. He posed for her, remaining still until his muscles cramped.

 

One night Abby invited him over for dinner, a tight smile on her face. He agreed hesitantly, weary of her intentions. Dinner was nice, a bit fancy for his taste, but he wasn’t one to complain about a hot meal made for him. It went well until Abby started asking Clarke about college. With every passing second her fists closed tighter and her smile became more of a grimace. Bellamy could see where this was going and quickly assessed the table, looking for items that could cause serious injury. Finding none he leaned back in his seat, deciding to let Clarke work through this.

 

She didn’t yell at Abby, she simply set down her napkin and excused herself. Bellamy followed a second later, not even sparing a glimpse in Abby’s direction. He jogged to Clarke’s room, nudging the door open. She was struggling to get the zipper of her dress down and he could tell from the shuddering of her shoulders that she was crying. Wordlessly he tugged zipper of the dress and helped her shimmy out of it. He drew a bath, adding the bubble bar she loved so much. She watched him, mascara running down her cheeks. She let him tug off her bra and panties, accepting his help into the tub. When he turned to leave, she grabbed his wrist and asked him to stay. He nodded, he would give her anything she asked if it would get rid of that haunted look in her eyes. He stripped off his clothes and climbed into the bath, sitting behind her. She leaned into him and he kissed the side of her neck.

 

“No matter what you want to be, I’ll be here.” He promised, tightening his hold on her.

 

**I'm falling**

**In all the good times I find myself longin' for change**

**And in the bad times I fear myself**

 

He worried about what their relationship was doing to Clarke. She’d wear his jacket on a cold day and while it made his heart soar seeing her in it, he was also reminded of the fact that he was in a gang and he was dragging Clarke into said gang. She could very well run the whole world if she wanted to, but he was keeping her in Arkadia, tied to him and his fucked up world.

 

Selfishly, he let himself enjoy it while it lasted. _Once we graduate I’ll end it_ , he told himself. So he let her enjoy the rebellious phase, let her walk on the wrong side of the tracks. But she wouldn’t be here in five years, of that he was certain.

 

One Friday night they went to a bar in the neighboring town of TriKru, a bar where ID’s were merely suggestions, not hard and fast rules. Bellamy sipped on his beer, keeping a close watch on Octavia and Clarke who were dancing in the middle of the bar. Miller slides into the seat next to him, clapping his shoulder. The friendship with Miller was unexpected, but they bonded over a shared concern of Clarke and from there it was easy. Bellamy gave him advice about Monty, Miller gave Bellamy advice about Clarke.

 

He kept his eye on Clarke and O, shifting in his seat when he saw a man approach them. The man seemed to be trying to get to Clarke, grabbing her wrists and hips while smiling creepily. He stayed seated, knowing full well that Clarke could handle herself. He’d taught her that much.

 

When she looked around, body language shifting from annoyed to scared, he jumped out of his seat, trying to reach her as quickly as possible. A second later his fist collided with the guys cheek.

  
As with most fights, he doesn’t remember what actually happened, but he does remember what happened after. He was nursing a split cheekbone and lip, bruised ribs, and what felt like a banged up spleen. Clarke helped him onto the motorcycle, driving them home. She and Octavia dragged him up the stairs of the apartment, flopping him onto the dining room table. Clarke grabbed her first aid kit out of the bathroom, starting to bandage the cut on his cheek.

  
He didn’t want this life for her. He didn’t want her to have to bandage him up all the time, to wonder if this was the time to go to the hospital, to always have a stocked first aid kit on hand.

 

As if reading his mind, she leaned down and kissed him softly.

 

“Thank you for protecting me,” She whispered, smiling like the sun was coming out.

 

**Tell me something boy**

**Aren't you tired tryin' to fill that void?**

**Or do you need more?**

**Ain't it hard keeping it so hardcore?**

 

Life with Bellamy wasn’t all bar brawls and gang activity, though that is all he can focus on sometimes. It’s their senior year and while Bell isn’t going to college yet, he’s still immeasurably stressed about his grades, where the other kids are going to school, and how to save up enough money to send Octavia to college.

 

He walks through the halls, brow furrowed because he still refuses to wear his glasses anywhere but around the house (“they mess with my look!”), and Clarke just wants to whisk him away, live out their days in peace on a farm or something. But she can’t, so she’ll take these nights.

  
She’ll take nights where Octavia sleeps at Ravens and everyone agrees to not text Bellamy unless its an emergency. She sets up the apartment living space to look like a fort, hanging sheets on couches and chairs, dragging a mattress under it all and covering it with pillows. They order Chinese takeout and stock the fridge with ice cream. They spend the night under the fort, Bellamy resting his head on her stomach and her carding her fingers through his hair, watching cheesy Disney movies.

  
Clarke isn’t sure when he falls asleep, but she thinks its somewhere between Frozen and Mulan. He looks so peaceful, his brow smoothed and his face unconcerned. She wants to protect him forever, keep him away from the mess that is their lives.

 

**I'm off the deep end, watch as I dive in**

**I'll never meet the ground**

**Crash through the surface, where they can't hurt us**

**We're far from the shallow now**

 

Clarke got into ArkU, a 20 minute drive from the apartment, and was planning on living with Bellamy and Octavia. Octavia was going to be a junior, thinking of applying to colleges that Bellamy thought were way too far away.

 

Clarke is finally free of her parents, having had her trust fund and college fund released to her. They took back the car, so she’s planning on buying the baby blue truck she’s been eyeing from Raven’s dad’s shop. It’s a clunker, but her eyes light up every time she sees it and she’s already brainstorming names for it.

 

They spent their last summer as a whole group by the river. Raven was going to MIT, Miller was going to BU, Lincoln was taking a year to hike the Pacific Northwest, Harper was off to Barnard. They still had Octavia, Monty, Jasper, and Monroe with them so that helped, but it still felt like a piece of their heart was leaving.

 

Bellamy soaks in the last rays of sun on a hot August night. They have a week until everyone leaves, and a sense of melancholy fills the air. In the river there’s a three way chicken fight between Miller and Clarke, Raven and Lincoln, and Jasper and Monroe. Harper was yelling words of encouragement from her unicorn float, sipping a beer. Octavia sits down next to Bellamy and he swings an arm over her shoulders, pulling his baby sister closer to him.

 

“Is this what it feels like? To finally have everything put into place?” She asked him. She was right. They were in a better financial spot than they’d been in years, he was 18 and she was 16 so if their mom ever made an appearance he’d be able to get custody, he had Clarke, and Octavia was safe and happy.

 

“Yeah, I think it is.”


End file.
